Another week has gone by and another cooking class has happened!! It is now five days later... let me see what I remember.
Tortas de Papas
I was thoroughly confused about what this could be when Vero said last week that we would make it. Tortas can mean cake. But in Mexico (where I am) they refer to sandwiches most often. So I was like... a potato cake? Or a potato sandwich? Or maybe something completely different? You need:
A few white (rather starchy?) potatoes (we used 4)
one egg
a handful (ish) of bread crumbs
queso pamela again!
Boil the potatoes (we used my pressure cooker on high for ten minutes and it was more than enough) and peel of the skin. Mash with the queso, the egg, and the crumbs until you have a not-too-sticky consistency. Shape into little patties and maybe dust them finely with some flour and then fry them in oil until both sides are golden brown! Then eat!!
Simple and delicious! We cut chiles poblanos into thin strips and cooked them in a frying pan until they were soft and then drizzled them with crema to eat with the potato patties.
We also made a green salsa (salsa verde) to add some spice to the dish.
Salsa Verde
four green tomatoes
one jalapeño
small wedge of onion
one clove of garlic
handful of fresh cilantro
Boil the tomatoes and the jalapeño for a while. Until soft, I guess ^^ Then put them and the other ingredients, plus a liiiiitle bit of water (because the tomatoes are very watery), into a blender and blend to the consistency that you want! Done! It is spicier when warm, so let it cool before eating. Also, the ratio of tomato to jalapeño can be messed with to make it more or less spicy.
Sopa de Tortilla
four or five plum tomatoes
sliver of onion
clove of garlic
chiles negros or also called chiles pasilla (long dried chiles)--we used two because we used some to garnish at the end, but I'd use one (or less) because they were too spicy for me.
chicken bullion powder
water or chicken broth
corn tortillas, several
a sprig or two of epazote--a leaf/herb/tea that doesn't have an english name!
crema
queso pamela
avocado
First, scorch the tomatoes and the wedge of onion on a comal, which is like a round griddle for making/heating tortillas and also, apparently, scorching tomatoes. (Vero, my teacher, told me that some people use a comal for scorching chiles poblanos too, but she says that they don't taste right if you don't burn your fingers a little, lol. Which means only wimps use comals for that ;) ).
Next, heat up one corn tortilla, toasting it a little, in a frying pan with some oil.
Then, chop the chiles negros into smallish strips [get rid of the seeds!!!] and saute those in oil until they are a little soft and super fragrant.
Put the tomatoes, toasted tortilla, chiles negros, onion, garlic, water (or broth), and chicken bullion powder in the blender and blend it up reeeeeeally smooth. And for the bullion, use like a spoonful or two? It's really to taste--Mexican cooking seems to use chicken bullion powder as the salt in a recipe. Once it is blended, heat some oil in a pot and then add the soup mixture. Taste and add bullion as needed. Add the epazote and let the whole thing boil for a while.
While that is cooking, cut the rest of the corn tortillas into strips and fry them up in a bunch of oil until you have chips!
In the end, you put a handful of the tortilla chips in a bowl, pour the soup over it, add cheese and avocado and crema, and EAT! Also super delicious. A day later we even reused the soup with some grilled cheese, which was pretty tasty!
Tortas de Papas
I was thoroughly confused about what this could be when Vero said last week that we would make it. Tortas can mean cake. But in Mexico (where I am) they refer to sandwiches most often. So I was like... a potato cake? Or a potato sandwich? Or maybe something completely different? You need:
A few white (rather starchy?) potatoes (we used 4)
one egg
a handful (ish) of bread crumbs
queso pamela again!
Boil the potatoes (we used my pressure cooker on high for ten minutes and it was more than enough) and peel of the skin. Mash with the queso, the egg, and the crumbs until you have a not-too-sticky consistency. Shape into little patties and maybe dust them finely with some flour and then fry them in oil until both sides are golden brown! Then eat!!
Simple and delicious! We cut chiles poblanos into thin strips and cooked them in a frying pan until they were soft and then drizzled them with crema to eat with the potato patties.
We also made a green salsa (salsa verde) to add some spice to the dish.
Salsa Verde
four green tomatoes
one jalapeño
small wedge of onion
one clove of garlic
handful of fresh cilantro
Boil the tomatoes and the jalapeño for a while. Until soft, I guess ^^ Then put them and the other ingredients, plus a liiiiitle bit of water (because the tomatoes are very watery), into a blender and blend to the consistency that you want! Done! It is spicier when warm, so let it cool before eating. Also, the ratio of tomato to jalapeño can be messed with to make it more or less spicy.
Sopa de Tortilla
four or five plum tomatoes
sliver of onion
clove of garlic
chiles negros or also called chiles pasilla (long dried chiles)--we used two because we used some to garnish at the end, but I'd use one (or less) because they were too spicy for me.
chicken bullion powder
water or chicken broth
corn tortillas, several
a sprig or two of epazote--a leaf/herb/tea that doesn't have an english name!
crema
queso pamela
avocado
First, scorch the tomatoes and the wedge of onion on a comal, which is like a round griddle for making/heating tortillas and also, apparently, scorching tomatoes. (Vero, my teacher, told me that some people use a comal for scorching chiles poblanos too, but she says that they don't taste right if you don't burn your fingers a little, lol. Which means only wimps use comals for that ;) ).
Next, heat up one corn tortilla, toasting it a little, in a frying pan with some oil.
Then, chop the chiles negros into smallish strips [get rid of the seeds!!!] and saute those in oil until they are a little soft and super fragrant.
Put the tomatoes, toasted tortilla, chiles negros, onion, garlic, water (or broth), and chicken bullion powder in the blender and blend it up reeeeeeally smooth. And for the bullion, use like a spoonful or two? It's really to taste--Mexican cooking seems to use chicken bullion powder as the salt in a recipe. Once it is blended, heat some oil in a pot and then add the soup mixture. Taste and add bullion as needed. Add the epazote and let the whole thing boil for a while.
While that is cooking, cut the rest of the corn tortillas into strips and fry them up in a bunch of oil until you have chips!
In the end, you put a handful of the tortilla chips in a bowl, pour the soup over it, add cheese and avocado and crema, and EAT! Also super delicious. A day later we even reused the soup with some grilled cheese, which was pretty tasty!
